


Time of Need

by jeweldancer



Series: Cas and Dean [8]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alcohol, Angst, Anxiety, Destiel - Freeform, Drinking, Family Drama, Fluff, Homophobia, John Winchester Being an Asshole, John Winchester's A+ Parenting, M/M, cursing, tense situation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-25
Updated: 2015-09-25
Packaged: 2018-04-23 08:28:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4870091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeweldancer/pseuds/jeweldancer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cue the dramatic music; John Winchester is making an entrance. After the death of Dean and Sam's mother and their subsequent difficult childhood, the Winchesters don't have much to do with their father. When John calls and announces he's in town, Sam, Dean, Jess, and Cas stick together to try and make the visit go as smoothly as possible. However, the evening takes an unexpected turn. Tension ensues, but there is a happy ending with fluff.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Time of Need

**Author's Note:**

> There's a little more to this part, but I really wanted to go ahead and post it, so I'll do kind of an epilogue this weekend.

Something was wrong, Castiel could tell immediately. When he entered Dean's apartment, Sam greeted him in a strained, perfunctory way, and Jess's eyes were wide and frightened. "What's wrong? Where's Dean?" Cas demanded, his heart pounding frantically. 

"It's okay, Cas. Dean's all right." Sam spoke more gently. "But you might not want to be here right now."

"What are you talking about? What's happened? Dean?"

Dean emerged from the kitchen, whiskey in hand. "Dad's in town."

Cas let out a deep breath, half relieved that Dean was in one piece, half fearful about what this meant. John Winchester was nearby. He felt as though the bogeyman had crawled out of the pages of a book and was in the neighborhood. "So...does that mean he's coming here?"

"Oh yeah, he's coming here. Son of a bitch can't ever stay away too long." Dean took another drink. "Maybe he wants money, maybe he just wants to fuck with us. We'll just have to wait and see."

Cas felt a prickle of fear. "Can't you tell him not to come?"

Dean looked straight at Castiel for the first time since he'd arrived. His eyes were tired and defeated. "What am I supposed to do, Cas? He's my dad."

"Anyway." Sam ran a hand through his hair, leaving it wild and messy. "Cas. Jess. It would probably be best if you guys left before he came. He's not very...polite to women, Jess. And Cas...um..."

Dean knocked back the rest of his whiskey. "What Sam's trying to say is that my father is a raging homophobe."

Jess crossed her arms and set her jaw. "I'm not leaving, Sam. Forget about it."

Cas took courage from her determination. "I won't be leaving, either. Although in light of what you just told me, it might be wise just to tell him I'm a friend."

"NO." Dean's response was immediate. "I'm not ashamed of you, Cas, or of who I am. I won't lie to anyone about what we are."

"Well, then," Sam gave them a tight smile. "It seems we're all in."

"We're family," Jess murmured. "We'll stick together."

Dean took Cas by the arm and pulled him into the hallway. "Listen, man. I don't want you to be uncomfortable. You don't have to stay."

"I do, actually. Dean, since we met, you've stuck by me no matter what. What kind of person would I be to abandon you in a time of need?"

Dean breathed a sigh of relief and cupped Cas's face in his hands. "I've gotta say, I kinda feel better knowing you're going to be close by."

Cas looked up into Dean's eyes. "Hey, it's going to be okay. He'll only be here for a little while, then we can all crash in the living room and watch movies and eat ice cream." He placed his hands on top of Dean's. "And...I could stay over, if you want me to."

"I do want you to." Dean leaned in to touch his forehead to Castiel's. "I can get through anything, if I know you'll stay with me tonight." They kissed softly.

"Hey, lovebirds," Jess called from the kitchen. "We need all hands on deck to get dinner ready."

"We're still going to cook?" Dean pulled himself away from Cas, a look of surprise on his face. 

"Yes!" Jess replied. "We were going to cook before, why should we let John Winchester ruin our plans? Now get your butts in here."

"Yes, ma'am!" Cas gave her a mock salute as he entered the kitchen. Jess swatted him with a dishtowel.

Dean took the lead on cooking, since he was the best at it, while Jess helped him. Cas and Sam were pretty much hopeless in the kitchen, so they kept busy finding ingredients and chopping whatever vegetables Dean gave them. 

"What time did he say he'd come by?" Jess asked.

"Seven, but he's always late," Dean replied. "If he's not here in a few minutes, we'll start without him."

There was a knock on the door, and everyone fell silent for a moment. Dean collected himself. "First time in the bastard's life he's ever been early for anything." He took a deep breath and opened the door. "Hey, Dad."

John Winchester entered the apartment warily, checking every corner of the room before looking directly at any of them. He was still handsome, Castiel thought; it shouldn't have surprised him, given Sam and Dean's looks. He was a big man, though not as tall as Sam. Cas studied him, trying to read his face. John looked confident, but it wasn't so much that he was unafraid. It was more like he figured that he could probably handle anything that came at him, but it didn't matter if he couldn't. It was the face of a man who didn't really care if he lived or died, Castiel concluded. 

"Boys," John greeted them casually. His eyes flicked over to Cas and Jess. "You gonna introduce me?"

Sam cleared his throat. "Dad, this is my girlfriend, Jess." 

"Mr. Winchester." Jess spoke coolly while staring him down. John nodded, and looked at her for a few seconds before turning to Dean.

"This is Cas. He's my boyfriend." Dean looked directly into his father's eyes and spoke firmly.

John snorted with disdain. "You're still into that shit? I'd hoped you'd have grown out of that by now, found yourself a girl. Good looking boy like you, oughta be able hit any girl he wants, but there you are with that..."

"Dad." Dean's voice was low and slightly threatening. "You may or may not agree with what I do, but you have to be respectful while you're in my house."

"Oh, get off your high horse, son." John stepped further into the living room, looking over Sam and Dean's possessions with an appraising eye. "What about being respectful of your old man, and not embarrassing me and tainting the family name?"

"I notice you're never too embarrassed to ask for money," Sam mumbled.

"What about all the money I spent raising you two? No gratitude for that, I suppose." 

Dean looked like he might explode, and Cas decided to try and defuse the situation. "Mr. Winchester, dinner is getting cold. Shall we go and sit down?"

"Dinner? Well, aren't you a little Suzie Homemaker. Do you wear a frilly apron while you cook?"

Jess looked horrified, and Sam's face was turning red. Cas didn't dare look at Dean. He could still turn this around, he thought. He could make John Winchester like him. He would just talk to him in a rational manner, and they would settle this like grown men. Cas cleared his throat, and straightened his shirt. 

The room went completely silent. Cas approached John, and with every step he took, his nervousness fell away. Cas heard himself speaking, but he didn't know where the words were coming from. "Listen, you asshole. Before you called and turned this whole evening to shit, the rest of us were going to sit down and have dinner like decent people. I suggest that you either shut your mouth and sit down, or be on your way."

Sam, Dean, and Jess stood in a row, mouths open in shock. Cas thought that John Winchester would probably punch him in the face now, but for once he was not afraid. He stood his ground and looked the older man in the eye. He felt as though he were having an out of body experience. 

John stared at Cas for almost a full minute before speaking. "So that's how it is, huh?"

"Yes. That is pretty much how it fucking is." Cas stared back. 

John suddenly chuckled. "All right then, Cas. Lead the way."

Cas showed him into the dining room/kitchen area and gestured toward a chair. "Won't you sit down?" he asked formally.

"Thank you, I will," John replied. 

The other three trooped into the room and quietly took their seats. Cas wished he had a photo of the scene. The boys looked bumfuzzled, and Jess's eyes were wide as saucers. Dean served the food, and as John and Cas were being polite, everyone else fell into the same pattern. There were murmurs of "please pass the rolls, if you don't mind" and "of course, not at all".

John and Castiel seemed to be trying to aggressively out-polite each other. Cas offered him more food in the most courteous way possible while glaring at him. John accepted the dishes with flowery gratitude while sparks seemed to be shooting from his eyes. Dean doubted that his father had uttered most of those phrases since his mother died. 

Finally the meal was over. Dean had prepared a cheesecake the day before, but he'd be damned if he was going to offer dessert and let this ordeal continue. They could all eat cheesecake on the couch after his father left. Cas and Jess started clearing the dishes away, and the Winchesters went back to the living room. 

"So, Dad," Dean decided to be blunt. "Are you gonna tell us why you came?"

John followed suit. "I need to borrow five hundred dollars."

Dean nodded and took out his wallet. "I thought so. But two-fifty's all I can spare." He handed the cash over and then stared silently at his father. John Winchester stood up and stuffed the money into his pocket. 

"I'll see you boys around, I expect." He walked over to the kitchen, where Jess was washing dishes and Cas drying. "Thank you for the meal, Cas."

"It was a pleasure, Mr. Winchester," Cas practically growled out the words.

John turned to Jess. "It was nice to meet you."

Jess nodded with regal disdain. "Likewise, Mr. Winchester."

"You boys have found yourselves a couple of little spitfires. Maybe they'll keep you in line." John opened the apartment door and showed himself out.

Everything was silent for several seconds, then Jess giggled. That did it. All of them burst into helpless laughter. Sam had to sit down on the floor. Dean laughed so hard that he cried. Cas could hardly breathe. Everytime they settled down, someone would titter and set them all off again.

"Cas. Oh, man. What the fuck was that?" Dean wiped tears from his face.

"Oh my God. Oh my God." Jess was lying back on the couch because she couldn't remain upright. "Cas, when you straightened your shirt, I knew some shit was about to go down."

"Wait. I straightened my shirt first? I did that?"

"Yes. It was the best thing ever. Where did all that come from?"

"I don't know! It was like...like somebody else was talking for me! I've never done anything like that before."

Dean pulled Cas against him and kissed him, hard, then looked into his eyes. "Cas, that was hands down the hottest fucking thing I've ever seen."

"Oo-kaay! Time for dessert before you boys start going at it right here in the living room." Sam pulled Jess off the couch and they both wobbled into the kitchen, snickering. They returned with plates of cheesecake for everyone. 

"So, can we start the movie? Cas, I can't believe you've never seen The Avengers." Dean slid the DVD into the player.

"Well, I don't get to the movie theater much. It's because I have a phobia of popcorn machines." Cas explained matter-of-factly. Everyone stared at him. "I'm kidding! Not really!"

"You ass!" Dean threw the DVD case at him, and Sam and Jess pelted him with pillows from the other sofa. It took a few minutes before they all settled down enough to start the movie, and Dean sat next to Cas so he could hold him. 

"Jess!" Cas whispered loudly over the opening credits. "You called us a family."

"Cause we are. The best kind. We picked each other."

"Except for me and Dean. I just got stuck with him."

"Shut up, Sammy. I'm the best big brother in the world and you know it."

Cas relaxed into Dean's arms as the bantering continued. He had picked a good family; or had they picked him? It didn't really matter.


End file.
